


Decisions of the Hearts

by imaginationispower



Category: The Tribe (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-03-11
Updated: 2014-03-11
Packaged: 2018-01-15 09:05:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,645
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1299295
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imaginationispower/pseuds/imaginationispower
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For the first time in a long while Ebony was happy, but she would be lying if she did not sometimes get a sense that something was missing. The feeling just wasn't overwhelming. She was content and she did not want to lose that. In the past whenever she was content with her life and made the mistake of letting the rest of the world in on it, that contentment was trampled on. She was terrified that sharing her little world with the world at large was going to be the end of everything that was going good for her now.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Decisions of the Hearts

**Author's Note:**

>   
>  [](http://imgur.com/2U8lNvo)   
> 
> 
>  
> 
>  **DISCLAIMER** This is a nonprofit, for-fun-only piece of literature. The Tribe and all its characters and everything related to that are property of Cloud 9 Screens and partners. I only put this story together. [See end notes for more disclaimers]
> 
>  **Author's Note:** This story was originally started back in 2003 under the title, “Why Did I Ever Let Her Go,” on the Official Tribe Message Board. From there it made an appearance on Fanfiction.net in 2004. At some point the Tribe Board crashed and about three years ago I removed this story from Fanfiction.net with the intentions of rewriting it. Well … better late than never, right? :D Anyhoo, this is the start of the revision.

_Standing at the edge of the lake, Jay marveled at the simplicity of Mother Nature’s beauty. It was night, the moon was high, bright, and reflecting boldly in the simmering water of the lake. The breeze was soft but carried with it the smell of some newly bosomed flowers. Since the virus and even before it if he was honest, it was a rare occasion when he took a moment to just stop and take everything in. He never felt like he had the time; there was always something to do. But when these moments of pause did happen, he tried to take full advantage of them. He began to stroll along the bank, trying to empty his mind of all the things weighing heavy on him, when he saw a woman standing not too far off._

_In the moonlight he could make out that she was wearing a long red dress that seemed to be made out of silk from the way it hung off her body. It wasn’t tight but it did show off her womanly curves demurely. From the way she stood he could also make out a teasing split that started mid-tight on her left leg. Her hair was made up of tiny braids that flowed freely down her back. And though he could not see her face, he knew she was beautiful and the peace that surrounded her was alluring._

_There was something familiar about this woman; something that drew him toward her, “Excuse me … my name is…” Jay began to introduce himself, but as soon as the woman was made aware of his presence she took off run without ever facing him. Jay tried to keep up with her but she was to fast and he lost her. He continued looking for her though, because he knew that had to find her. For what felt like hours Jay wondered around the forest surrounding the lake in search of her._

_Then finally when Jay had lost all hope he hears this heavenly sound off in the distance. He followed the sound and realized that it was the woman in the red. She was singing as she sat there waiting … but for what? “There you are,” Jay sighed as he approached her slowly as not to startle her. But before he could get to close to her, she stood and looked as though she was going to run again. “No. Please stay,” he begged. She seemed to hesitate a moment to consider his plea, but still did not turn to face him._

_“Jay, what are you doing here? This place is not for you,” the woman said in a soft voice; her back still to him._

_“How is it that you know my name?”_

_“That doesn’t matter … not anymore … please go … he is coming," she paused for a moment before adding, "And you shouldn’t be here when he comes.” Her gaze fixed off into the distance._

_“What? I don’t understand. What doesn’t matter?" He made a step closer to her, but she moved two steps away from him. "Please just tell me your name or at least let me look at your face,” Jay pleaded, forcing himself not to move for fear of her running. He did not know why but he was drawn to this woman and wanted to know her._

_The woman sighed heavily before finally turning to face him. “Jay, please leave,” Ebony pleaded with him softly._

_The moment Jay’s eye fell on Ebony’s face he felt his heart skip a beat; her name passing through his lips like a whispered prayer. In seconds he closed the space between them hugging her securely against his chest. His whole body seemed to sigh in relief at the feel of her in his arms; it had been too long since he held her like this. The last time he saw her was almost four months ago and the encounter had not been pleasant. But as he held her now it felt like all the problems … all the badness between them melt away. He felt none of his own resentments towards how things ended between them, as if he had never felt them at all. All he knew now was that he loved her and wanted her as his. He needed her. “Okay, I will leave,” he said after a moment pulling away slightly so that he could look into her eyes. “But only if you come with me.” Now that he had her here with him there was no way he was going to let her get away again._

_With a sad smile on her face, Ebony shook her head. “No; I can’t. We are not meant to be.” Her tone was soft and her eyes shining with unshed tears showing that it did hurt her to admit this. “I know that now because I belong to **him** ,” her lips spread into a sweet smile as she spoke._

_“No, that can’t be true,” Jay exclaimed refusing to believe her words. “How do you know that we were not meant to be? We barely had a chance…”_

_“Yes, we did. You know that,” she countered gently. “We tried to make it work … but our ideals … our beliefs were too different.” She paused for a moment before continuing, “That's okay though, because everything is perfect now … my King has returned.” At that admission her sweet smile into loving one; it made her beautiful red lips that much more appealing. She was so beautiful to look at but it hurt to know that smile was not for him._

_“I can’t accept that,” he said softly holding her just a little tighter. “You belong with me,” the conviction in his tone strong. He had no intentions of letting her go._

_“You’re wrong;” an authoritative voice exclaimed causing both of them to look in the direction it came from. “She belongs to me,” Zoot declared unwaveringly; his own smile shining brightly at Ebony._

_“My King!” Ebony sang happily as she broke free of Jay and ran to Zoot._

_“My Queen,” Zoot responded as he welcomed her warmly into his arms._

_Jay thought that he was going to be sick as he watched them share a few whispered endearments and soft touches. Then his heart completely stopped as Zoot claimed a passionate kiss from Ebony’s saccharine lips. Jay could not stand the sight of Ebony kissing another man; he looked away dejectedly._

_As the kiss ended Zoot held Ebony at his side as he looked directly at Jay, a smirked painted on his face. “You had your chance, Jay,” Zoot reminded the other man smugly. “But you let her go … and for what? Amber? Trudy? Neither of whom measures up to my love … my Queen.” He looked down at Ebony then, placing a kiss on her temple. Looking back at Jay he shrugged nonchalantly. “I mean yes; Trudy carried my child, but that is all she was ever good for. Not that that matter. The point is that Ebony by my side again, as it rightfully should be.”_

_“No!” Jay boomed as he tried to move towards them, “Ebony you belong with me!” It was his intention to take her from him, but Jay was horrified to discover that he could not move. It was like his feet were rooted to the ground._

_“Come my love,” Zoot said as he wrapped his arm more securely around Ebony’s waist. “Our people are waiting for us. They want to be reunited with their Queen.”_

_“NO!!!” Jay yelled as he fought harder to move, but it was as if the harder he struggled the stronger the force holding him back got. “Ebony please; come back to me.”_

_“Bye Jay,” was Ebony’s soft response to his plea. There was a friendly smile on her face; she didn’t want to hurt him. “And know this is best for everyone.”_

_“No, Ebony; you belong with me,” Jay cried as he fell to his knees. “Come back…” But it was too late Ebony and Zoot where gone._

“NO! Come back,” Jay yelled as he sprung up in his bed. He was breathing was labored, and he his skin felt clammy from perspiration. 

“Jay, honey what’s wrong?” Trudy asked softly as she sat up in bed beside him and began rubbing soothing circles on his back. 

It took Jay a moment to realize where he was and that he had been dreaming … again, “Umm, it was nothing,” he said discreetly shrugging away from her touch. “It was just a dream,” he explained as got out of the bed, refusing to look Trudy.

It had been just a dream for about two weeks now Trudy thought, but Jay refused to talk to her. She was starting to feel like he was putting up a wall between them and she didn’t know what do about it. “Do you want to talk about it?” Trudy asked, her tone almost making her question sound like a plea.

“No, I just need to be alone right now,” he said as he finished lacing up his shoes. “Go back to bed,” he told her softly as he left the room without so much as a second glance in her direction. 

As Jay left the room that he has been sharing with Trudy for about four months now, he felt some of the pressures weighing on him lift. When he first starting coming to Trudy’s room; it had been his refuge. Lately however, he felt more suffocated than anything, especially with Trudy there. Then two weeks ago the dreams about Ebony started and that only served to make the situation worst.

Walking on to the roof of the mall, Jay felt relief as the air touched his face. The roof of the mall, especially at night, was the only place he felt at ease these days. Inhaling deeply he looked out at the city below him; his thoughts immediately turning to Ebony when his eyes fell on the hotel. He smiled as she thought about the first time they met. From the very beginning there was an spark ... an attraction between them. Their sexual tension was thick enough to cut with a knife by the time Ram decided to make the hotel the new Techno headquarters. The two of them had been through so much, from having to see each other in secret, dealing with Ram manipulations, and even a battle with the Technos before the two them were finally able to be together with no lies and restrictions. Jay can’t remember ever being so happy, but that happiness was short lived. Now she is with another man at the hotel while he was miserable at the mall. He hated to think about the distance that was between them now. 

Frustrated he kicked a piece of debris that was near him. He hated that his thoughts were constantly being consumed with Ebony lately. The two of them had been over for months; he had been happy with Trudy. He would like to say he did not understand, but deep down he knew the answers to all his questions. A person can only lie to himself for so long before he can’t. And the truth of the matter was that while he did care for Trudy, what he had with her was nowhere near the same passion and need that had … still has for Ebony. No one has ever challenged him the way she did, and Ebony is the only woman that has ever made him feel completely whole. The only thing he could not figure out now was, “Why did I ever let her go,” he asked the night sky getting no answer in return.

&&&&&&&&&&

Staring at the ceiling Ebony sighed as sleep continued to elude her; she was feeling a little on edge all day. She knew the reason that she was having trouble sleeping was because she was nervous about tomorrow. Tomorrow the perfect bubble she had been living in was going to pop. Good or bad or indifferent everything was going to change. 

Too restless to stay lying down, Ebony quietly got out of bed. Grabbing the blanket was folded on the chaise at the end of the bed, she made her way towards the balcony that was off her room, she. As she step onto the balcony Ebony felt a sense of relief as the nigh air hit her face. Wrapping the blanket around her she curled up in one of the lounge chairs. Her room had a pool view, but it was also one of the top floor so she had a great view of the countryside too. 

As she sat there she allowed her mind to drift in the direction she had not allowed herself to think about in a long time. But considering what was supposed to take place tomorrow she just could not help herself. Tomorrow, she thought with a sigh, Zoot was going to made his first offical public appearance since coming back from the dead almost four months ago. Even with everything that has happened, Ebony still found it hard to believe that Zoot was alive and here. Everyone had been so sure that he died that night Lex pushed him off the balcony at the mall, but it turns out that Zoot had just been knocked unconscious with some serious injuries. Like any leader Zoot had not come to the Mall that night alone; a couple of his most devoted followers had been with him. They had followed Bray and the others to the beach then saved him from the burning boat. 

After Zoot was saved he was taken to an outpost that Zoot had not even shared with Ebony that the time. The outpost was conspired of some of Zoot’s most loyal followers and when they discovered how sick he was the group ended up disbanding into two groups: the Chosen and the Technos. Turns out directly following the virus Ram was a follower of Power and Chaos, but when Zoot got sick he decided to follow through with Zoot’s ideals on his own all the while supplying the camp where Zoot was being held. The location of that camp was Ram’s highest top secret; none of the Technos that were with him during the raid of the city knew of it. It was for this reason the fact that Zoot was alive had not come out sooner. 

Then just over four months ago Ebony and the rest of the Mallrats starting hearing reports of people saying they saw Zoot. Ebony could remember the skepticism that echo in the halls of the mall. Given everything they had seen … everything they had been through ... none of them really believed it. Ved had suggested that maybe it was some virtual illusion. But the only problem with that was, besides Ram - who was incapacited, who might be capable of such a feat. 

It was actually was not until the worst day of Ebony’s life that they all find out the truth. It was the night that she had found that Jay was seeing Trudy behind her back. The blowout had been relatively mild considering what Ebony was capable of in the past, but she opted to be graceful this time. She had refused to cry in front of them and left the mall as soon as she said her peace. It was when she was alone by the lake just outside the city that she broke. Even now as she thought about it, Ebony felt a shiver run down her back which causing her to wrap the blanket tighter around her. She had been a mess and that was when Zoot found her; she had been living with him in the hotel ever since. 

Not wanting anyone to wonder where she was Zoot had sent world to the mall. It was Siva that came investigating the legitimacy of the note and found Zoot; seeing the former Loco leader was a shock to say the least. But once the shock had worn off, Siva had gone into complete protective big sister mode. At the time Ebony had been completely out of it, but she remembered laughing about it later when Zoot told her how fierce her soft spoken sister had been. Siva would not leave until she had Zoot's promise that protecting and caring for Ebony was going to be one of his top priorities. 

“The thing is,” Ebony remembered Zoot adding softly, “promise or no promise making sure you are all right is important to me.” They had been sitting on the bed in the room he had given her. She had been there for about a week already, but she still was not leaving her room. So just as he had done every day so far, he had brought her dinner to her room. Normally Zoot would talk to her about some of the places he had seen in the past few years while eating his dinner; she would just listen and picked at her food. That particular day though had been a little different because Siva had actually stopped by to check on her. When Siva left Ebony heard her tell Zoot that it looks like he had kept his promise after all. That night at dinner, she had asked what Siva meant … talking to him for the first time since he had brought her home to the hotel. He had been a little taken back but immensely pleased. It was then he went into the story of how her sister all but threatened him within an inch of his life if anything were to happen to Ebony while under his care. He had been animated as he spoke and Ebony remembered feeling life enter her body when she laughed. It was microscopic but it was there. When the moment passed and he turned serious, and he began telling her just how important she was to him she felt something at that moment too.

When she and Zoot had first gotten together right after the virus, they were the power couple that ruled the Locos. In public they were ruthless, callous, and merciless. Their names together struck fear in those that hear it. And while it was true that Ebony initially got with Zoot because of the power he had, while he connected with Ebony because he saw her ability to manipulate and work a crowd as an asset. And though they were openly using each other there was more to their relationship than anyone knew. Behind closed doors, Ebony witnessed a gentleness to Zoot reminisce of Martin, the guy Ebony knew to be Bray’s little brother. More than that there was an understanding between the two of them; they got each other in ways that that others did not. That was not to say that he did not exercise his power while they were in public, but behind closes doors he had been her friend. The closest thing to a real friend she had up until that point. When he died she had truly missed him. Evidently he had missed her too, which basically what he let her know.

Glancing back into the room, Ebony smiled at the sight of Zoot lying in their bed. That moment when he made her laugh about Siva started something between them. It wasn't long before Ebony started looking forward to Zoot’s visits and when she ventured out of her room he was the person she spent most of her time with. Their relationship progress bit by bit before the enviable happened and things between them took a romantic turn. 

If that wasn’t enough, Zoot was making plans to reclaim the city. He had a vision of what the city could become and he wanted Ebony his side through it all. And though power was not as important to her as it once was, Ebony appreciated his need to include her. So she started working with him to make his vision become a reality. Tomorrow they were actually going to reveal their plans to the rest of the city, which was the reason she was so unnerved now. For the past four months she had been living in a type of seclusion with Zoot. The only people that she interacted with were those that Zoot had working closely with him and Siva when she came to visit, but tomorrow she will have to start interacting with the rest of the world. She would have to start interacting with people that she has not seen or spoken to in months; she was scared. 

For the first time in a long while Ebony was happy, but she would be lying if she did not sometimes get a sense that something was missing. The feeling just wasn't overwhelming, so she was able to ignore it most of the time. She was content and she did not want to lose that. In the past whenever she was content with her life and made the mistake of letting the rest of the world in on it, that contentment was trampled on. She was terrified that sharing her little world with the world at large was going to be the end of everything that was going good for her now. 

Ebony sat out on the balcony for about an hour when the chill from the night air made its way through the blanket. Gathering herself up, she quietly made her way back into the room. She draped the blanket on the back of chaise and slipped in beside Zoot. As soon as she lay down Zoot wrapped a protective arm around her and pulled her close. He loved her so much. “Yeah, this is the way it should be. This is the best thing for everyone,” Ebony thought to herself as she as she fell asleep in Zoot’s arms.

**Author's Note:**

> First thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed and are intrigue to see where things might go. But before we get to far into the story, I feel the need to share that this particular story took me on a very interesting journey. When first I started the story I had a particular ending already in mind but the more I wrote, the more things changed. To say this story wrote itself is an underestimate. It is the reason that the title changed; “Decisions of the Heart” is more suiting for how the story goes. And if I was honest right now I don’t know how the story will end.
> 
> Also, I would like to note that there will be some original characters showing up in this story as well. Again, I started this story ten years ago on a board that does not exist anymore (there is a new version of it but it is not the same), and these characters were acquired through an audition process that took place on that original Tribe board. Even though I will not be listing each character by name and who submitted him/her, I do feel the need to at least acknowledge where the characters came from.
> 
> And finally, to those that know Tribe cannon I did change a few things around a bit. So please know that following changes are intentional: Cloe & Ved are all right and living with the Mallrats, all the Mallrats taken in the Techno raid are back {except Bray} and Ned is alive. There are some other changes but that will be explained throughout the story. 
> 
> Until next time...


End file.
